Knockdown carrier



April 4, 1953 w. A. RINGLER 2,634,895

xnocxoowu CARRIER Filed NOV. 20, 1947 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Maw! 4 F/mz/sf.

BYWYW ATTO RN EYS.

A ril 14, 1953 w. A. RINGLER 3 KNOCKDOWN CARRIER 7 Filed Nov. 20, 1947 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Z1 lhlih .FIGJ 1 RT To R N EYS.

A ril 14, 1953 w. A. RINGLER KNOCKDOWN CARRIER '3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed NOV. 20, 1947 INVENTOR; M40444 4 fi/VG'LEf. QWew Patented Apr. 14, 1953 KNOCKDOWN CARRIER William A. Ringler, Wayne, Pa., assignor to The Gardner Board and Carton 00., a corporation of Ohio Application November 20, 1947, Serial No. 787,088

2 Claims.

My invention relates to carriers for bottles or the like, which carriers have a collapsible or knock-down body formed of paperboard.

An object of my invention is the provision of a strong and simple paper board bottle carrier, capable of repeated use, which may be shipped to the user in the knock-down condition,

and which requires no interfolding of parts or gluing to fit it for service.

It is an object of my invention to provide a collapsible paperboard carrier which is fully partitioned, the partitions being self erecting along with the carrier.

It is an object of my invention to provide a paperboard carrier body'which may be folded and glued in its manufacture on available carton folding and gluing equipment, including those folding and gluing steps required to form self erecting partitions referred to above.

These and other objects of my invention which will be set forth hereinafter or will be apparent to one skilled in the art upon reading these specifications, I accomplish by that construction and arrangement of parts, and in that procedure of which I shall now describe exemplary embodiments. Reference is made to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a plan View of the paperboard blank which I employ.

Figure 2 is a partial perspective view showing an initial stage of the folding of 'the partition members.

Figure 3 is a partial perspective view show-'- Figure 5 is a partial plan view showing the next stage of blank folding.

Figure 6 is a sectional View taken along the line 6-6 of Figure 5 and showing the folded condition of the end portion of the blank.

Figure 7 is a plan view of the blank in finally folded condition.

Figure 8 is a sectional view of the folded blank taken along the line 8-8 of Figure '7.

Figure 9 is a perspective view showing an initial stage in the erection of the carrier.

Figure 10 is a perspective view of the completely erected carrier including a handle element.

Figure 11 is a cross sectional View showing an initial step of handle engagement.

Figure 12 is a cross sectional view showing the handle in its upper or carrying position.

Figure 13 is a cross sectional view showing the ill handle element in its lower or stacking position.

Figure 14 is a perspective view of the handle element.

In Figure 1, I have illustrated a cut and scored paperboard blank, which may be formed on the usual cutting and scoring press, from boxboard which may have been printed in any way de-- sired. I am not limited as to the weight or nature of boxboard to be employed, but my preference" is for the heavier boxboards by reason of their strength. 7

This blank provides a side wall element I, to? the end of which are articulated end wall elements 2 and 3 along score lines 4 and 5. The. end Wall elements carry articulated glue flaps land 9, and are provided with 'intermediate'score' lines It and II. A partition forming element,- having a central portion I2 is articulated to the top edge of the side wall member I, along a score line l3. The partition element is provided with side portions I4 and i5 and attachment flaps 16' and H. The side portions l4 and I5 have inter-' mediate score lines 18 and I9.

To the bottom edge of the side wall member I, along a score line 20, I articulate a bottom form'- ing portion 2|. This is provided with a median score line 22. Another side wall element 23' 'is articulated to the bottom forming portion alongv a score line 24, and to a third side wall forming: element 25 along a score line 26. A bottom form-' ing portion 2! is articulated to the third side wall 25 along a score line 28, and to a fourthside wall element 29 along a score line 30. The bottom forming element 21 is'provided'with a median score line-3|. The fourth side wall element 29 has-end wall elements 32 and 33 articulated to its ends, and to these I articulate glue'fiaps 34 and 35. The end wallportions 32 and. 33 are provided with median score lines 36 and 31.

A partition element having a central portion 38 is artic ul'ated along a score line 39 to the top edge of 'the fourth sidewall 29. The parti tion forming element has side portions 4|] and 4| providedwith median score lines 42 and 43, and end attachment flaps 4'4 and 45.

Dimensions are not a limitation upon my in vention. v rier is designed to hold six bottlesin two groups of three each, the length of the end wall p91- tions 2,3, 32 and 33 is made to be approximately one-third of the length of the side wall portions I, 23, 25 and29. The two intermediate side wall portions 23' and 25 are provided with slits or slots 46, 41, 48 and 49. These slots are of a Since the particular exemplary car-' a length not greater than half the depth of the side wall portions 23 and 25, and the respective pairs of slots are spaced from each other a little more than one-third of the distance representing the length of the side walls 23 and 25. The slots are so positioned that when the walls 23 and are folded along the score line 26 so as to lie parallel and inface-to-face relationship, the respective slots of the two pairs will match.

I have shown the partition elements as having a width approximately half the width of the side Walls of the carrier. If it is desired to have the partitions extend for the full depth of the carrier, it is within the scope of my invention to increase the width of the partition elements to equal that of the side Walls, or so to increase the depth of the side portions M, I5, andv M only. The

attachment flaps l6, I1, 44 and 45, may remain at the width shown; but if increased to the width of the side Walls it will be necessary to slot them to match the slots 46, 41,48 and $9.

Theblankiillustrated in Figure 1 may be folded and glued in any available folding and gluing. machine which is capable of folding members fore and aft along score lines transverse" the direction of motion of the blanl: through the machine. Such machines ordinarily have at least one section having folding elements traveling with the blank and operating in fore and aft directions.

The. first folding operations to be performed on my blank are the folding of the partition elements. Folding of these two sets of elements may occur simultaneously or in sequence. In Figure 2. I have shown the folding of apartition element in an intermediate stage. The central portion 12 has been folded forwardly and upwardly with respect to the side wall member I, and at the same time the remaining portions of the artition element including the side element [4 and 15 and the attachment flaps l6 and ['l have been folded rearwardly as indicated. The latter operation be accomplished by means of rod located along the path of the moving blank in a position to engage and retard portions of the partition structures. as the central portions are folded upwardly. V

In a later stage of the folding as illustrated in Figure 3 the central portion of the partition. structure has been folded inwardly over the blank, and the immediately adjacent portions of the remainder of the partition structure have been folded inwardly over the central portion 12.. However the partition structure is now shown as being folded along the median. score lines l8 and [9 in the side portions of the partition structure. This operation may be accomplished through the action of a second set of rods so located as to engage the outlying parts of the partition structure as they are. folded inwardly, and reversely fold them, causing them to bend along the score lines l8 and [9. As illustrated in Figure 4 the final folded condition of the partition structure is one in which the central portion I2 has been completely folded in over the side wall element I so asto parallel it, portions of the side elements It and I5 of the partition structure bein folded in laterally to overlie the central portion !2, and the remaining portions of the partition structure being in out-folded condition.

The operations just described in connection with the folding of the'rea-r or trailing partition structure may be duplicated with respect to the front or leading partition structure, which is similarly folded with respect to the side wall element 29.

lines 22. and 3|.

When the partition structures have been folded as described, as the next operation I apply adhesive to portions of the glue flaps I, 9, 34 and 35. The portions so treated are those which will lie on the attachment flap portions of the partition structures when the end wall elements 2, 3, 32 and 33 are folded on their median lines. Areas of adhesi'vesz are indicated in Figure 4 at 50 and 5|. It will be understood that the adhesive can instead be applied to corresponding portions of the partition structures. The end portions 2, 3, 32 and. 33- of the blank are folded over on the score lines 10, H, 36 and 31 to provide, at each end of the. blank, the. structure illustrated in Figures 5 and Next adhesiveis applied to the outer sides of the glue flaps l, a, 34. and 35 as indicated in the shaded areas 52 and 53 in Figure 5, and if desired tothe attachment portions of the lateral partition members (or to corresponding areas in the second and third side wallmembers 23 and 251).. The final folding operation. comprise folding the. first and fourth side wall members I and 2:9, and their associated folded parts as hereinabove. described, inwardly on the score lines 22 and 3|, which. are; the median score lines of the bottom forming elements. The result of this folding i to cause theglue flaps I, 9, 3 1' and 35 to be brought into adhesive union with the side. edge portions of the second and third side wall members 23 and 25. The resultant structure is shown in plan inFigure '7. The knock-down structure may be shipped to the user in this form.

The. product of these folding operations is a knock-down carrier of fully partitioned type. The structure of Figure. 7 maybe bent along the score line- 26. to bring the side Walls 23"and 25 into face-to-face parallel relationship. A band. portion is provided to. surround each of two groups of. three. bottles. The first band portion comprises the side walls 1 and 23 and the end walls 2 and. 3. The second hand portion comprises the side walls 25 and 29 andv end walls 32 and 33. Each of these structures is erected by opening up. its band portion, the end wall. parts coming into coplanar relationship by unfolding along themedian score lines I 0, l l, 36 and 31, and the bottom forming portions. comin into coplanar relationship by unfolding alon their median score Simultaneously the partition structures become. erected by the unfolding of the side portions l4, I5, 32 and 33 along their median scorelines l8, ll,36'and31l The first stage of erection. is indicated in Figure 9 where the main sections of the carrier are folded with respect to each other along the score. line 26. The final stage of erection is indicated in Figure. 10. The two side wall members 23 and 25, coming together in face-to-face relationship form a central partition for the carrier, the carrier otherwise resenting six cells for bottles as shown.

With this carrier I employ a handle of the type illustrated in Figurel l. This handle is a wire member comprising a bail portion 54 and depending legs 55 and 56. These legs are spaced from each other slightly more than. one-third the length of the side wall members. Their lower ends are. reversely bent as shown at 57 and 58, the length of the reversely bent portions being longer than the length of the slots 46, 41, 48 and 49. 7

To engage this handle. with the carrier, the legs are passed downwardly into one of the car rier sections, the reversely bent ends being brought through, say, the slots 46 and ll to a position where the upper ends of the reversely bent portions lie below the tops of the slots 46 and 41, the ends of the handle passing between the slightly separated side walls 23 and 25. Then these walls are brought together, and the handle drawn upwardly. A snug engagement results in which the two side wall portions 23 and 25 and the attachment flaps l and 44 of the partition forming portions are clamped together between the leg 55 and its reversely bent portion 51. In a similar way the two side wall portions 23 and 25 and the attachment flaps l7 and 45 of the partition forming structures are clamped together between the leg 56 and its reversely bent portion 58. The mode of attaching the handle is illusstrated in Figure 11 as to its initial stage. Figure 12 shows the handle in full engagement-and in an upper or carrying osition. Figure 13 shows the handle depressed so that it comes below the tops of bottles in the carrier for stacking purposes. The construction is such however that the handle can not be detached from the paperboard portion of the carrier without forcibly separating the side wall elements 23 and 25. It is thus impossible to detach the handle accidentally when the carrier is loaded.

Modifications may be made in my invention without departing from the spirit of it. Having thus described my invention in certain exemplary embodiments, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a'knock-down paperboard carrier, a common wall folda'ble on a median score line and forming inner side walls of two parts of said carrier, bottom wall portions articulated to the bottom edges of said inner side wall members, outer side wall members articulated to said bottom wall portions, end walls articulated to end edges of said outer side wall members and carrying glue flaps which are in adhesive union with marginal end edges of said inner side wall members, said end Walls and bottom wall portions being foldable on median score lines, collapsible transverse partition elements connecting the inner and outer side walls of each part, said transverse partition elments having their central portions in articulation with central portions of the upper edges of the outer side Wall members, additional portions extending between said outer side wall I members and the inner side wall members of said carrier and collapsible on median score lines, and attachment flaps articulated to said additional portions and serving to attach said additional portions to the inner side walls of said carrier, the common wall of said carrier when-folded on its median score line serving to bring the two carrier parts into side-by-side relationship, and said median score lines in said end walls," bottom wall portions and the additional portions of said transverse partition elements serving to permit said carrier parts to be collapsed, said inner side walls being slotted for the reception of a handle member serving to clamp together said inner side walls so as to maintain said carrier parts in sideby-side relationship, said inner side walls being otherwise unsecured to each other.

2. The structure claimed in claim 1 wherein the inner and outer side walls are substantially coterminous, and wherein the slots in the inner side walls are spaced so as to lie adjacent the juncture of said lateral partition elements with said inner side Walls, said attachment'flaps of said transverse partition elements extending in the direction of said slots, whereby the handle member will also serve to clamp together said inner side wall members and the attachment flaps of said transverse partition elements.

WILLIAM A. RINGLER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,014,414 Purchas Jan. 9, 1912 1,077,322 Ward Nov. 4, 1913 2,106,266 Bate Jan. 25, 1938 2,217,028 Powell Oct. 8, 1940 2,285,399 Arneson June 9, 1942 2,418,350 Holy Apr. 1, 1947 2,425,140 Allen Aug. 5, 1947 2,460,108 Smith Jan. 25, 1949 

